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It's now more than a year since J.C. Penney announced that Ron Johnson, the Apple alumni-cum-retail wunderkind, would assume the top job at the 110-year-old department store. And it's almost a full 12 months since Johnson waltzed onto a Midtown Manhattan stage, clad in jeans and a sweater—gear sold only at J.C. Penney. Johnson was already trying to put his mark on the company and establish its new image. If a man like Johnson, a smooth-talking, West Coaster who worked for Steve Jobs, would dress in J.C. Penney threads, then more people would, too. Right?

Dapper and loquacious, he won over his audience. Moreover, he promised that 2012 would be a fine year.

A month later, in February, J.C. Penney released this statement from Johnson: "As we embark on this transformation, the strategic changes we are making to our business model will dramatically simplify J.C. Penney’s operations, significantly lower the company’s cost structure create a platform for growth that will result in improved profitability in 2012 and beyond."

Yes, Johnson pledged more profit this year. How's that going? Miserably. J.C. Penney is expected to book a $1.81 cents a share loss (including items) for the year. That's about double last year's loss. In 2011, J.C. Penney posted a 70 cents a share loss. Already, J.C. Penney has racked up nearly $2 a share in losses, but analysts forecast it to make 7 cents a share in the fourth quarter.

J.C. Penney wound up in this situation mostly because Johnson is trying his best to create a new type of J.C. Penney customer. He's trying to attract the 20-, 30-year-old set. Folks, like myself, who are charmed by the hangout atmosphere at Starbucks (Johnson envisions coffee bars in his new stores). People who shop at specialty retailers like lululemon (Johnson envisions yoga classes next to that java).

This would leave behind people like my mother, who drinks her coffee at home and believes yoga to be mystical hoodoo. Significantly, shoppers like Mom have been the core J.C. Penney customers. They clipped coupons and relished the incessant promotions that J.C. Penney offered. Today, when J.C. Penney can't decide if it will hold promotions or not, these key customers are choosing to shop else where, maybe at Macy's or Kohl's. In the most recent quarter, sales at established J.C. Penney stores fell by 26%, a marked sign that people are fleeing J.C. Penney stores faster than children sprinting home from school.

Truth be told, I did shop last week at J.C. Penney. I went to buy a cheap pair of red pants—for an holiday party outfit where everyone will dress like Santa. I certainly found what I sought. Inexpensive (and appropriately hideous) trousers. Looking around, I sensed the store would soon receive the full Johnson treatment. Large open spaces existed between the displays, seemingly awaiting the new wider aisles and stores-within-a-store layout that Johnson says will come.

The drastic disparity between what Johnson promised and what he delivered this year should inform investment decisions more than recent bullish noises from analysts. Shares of J.C. Penney are up 20% in a month. More than a few observers have put a short-term Buy rating on J.C. Penney shares; the flip-flop back toward more promotions might mean for sales. Yet, that switch suggests J.C. Penney is struggling to establish its identity.

With J.C. Penney off 40% in 2012, Johnson, stung by more than one failed promise, will need to gain investors' trust all over again.